Seagull cuts power to San Quentin

A wayward seagull flew into a power line Monday and knocked out power to San Quentin State Prison and the surrounding area. (Jitze Couperus/Flickr)

As a seagull, it’s a tough call. You can go out quietly like the rest of your seagull friends, engulfed at sea, or gasping for air mired in some muddy marsh.

Or, you can go out with a bang: A fatal flash of glory with costly, widespread effect in the human world beneath you.

A seagull had just such a tangle with a power line Monday afternoon near San Quentin State Prison, knocking out power to the prison, a fire station, and starting a small brush fire.

Power was cut to the prison and about 840 PG&E customers after the bird electrocuted itself on a power line in San Rafael. Fire crews responded to put out a small fire that briefly closed East Francisco Boulevard and Castro Avenue.

The IJ reports San Quentin ran off generator power for more than an hour while power was restored in the area.